Localization Engineering

Internationalization

Internationalization is the process of designing an application so that it can be adapted to various languages and regions without engineering changes. Sometimes the term internationalization is abbreviated as i18n, because there are 18 letters between the first "i" and the last "n."

An internationalized program has the following characteristics:

  With the addition of localization data, the same executable can run worldwide.
  Textual elements, such as status messages and the GUI component labels, are not hard- coded     in the program. Instead, they are stored outside the source code and retrieved dynamically.
  Support for new languages without recompilation requirement.
  Culturally dependent data, such as dates and currencies, appear in formats that conform to the end user's region and language.
  It can be localized quickly.

As one of the largest Asian language vendors, we are able to help customers internationalize their programs before localization, such as DBCS-enabling, hard coding into the resource file, and installing a multi-language package. Our in-house software engineers ensure that we can provide one-stop service from i18n to L10n (localization).

DBCS Enablement

DBCS stands for Double Byte Character Set. It means a character set in which all characters (including all control characters) are encoded in two bytes. * In CJK（Chinese, Japanese, and Korean）computing, the term DBCS traditionally refers to a character set in which each graphic character is encoded in two bytes. The DBCS always has lead bytes with the most significant bit set (i.e., being 1), and is always paired up with a single-byte character-set (SBCS). Furthermore, for the practical reason of maintaining compatibility with unmodified, off-the-shelf software, the SBCS is associated with half-width characters and the DBCS with full-width characters.

DBCS enablement for software internationalization refers to writing software for East Asian markets using older technology with code pages, i.e. using incompatible code pages that exist between the various countries in East Asia for internationalizing software. Since Unicode supports all the major languages in East Asia, unlike many other code pages, it is generally easier to enable and maintain software that uses Unicode. DBCS (non-Unicode) enablement is usually desired only when much older operating systems or applications that do not support Unicode are likely to be used.

BEC is experienced in providing DBCS-enablement services for introducing an application into the East Asian market successfully. Our service includes converting hard-coded text into resource files, making a language package in the target languages, and creating a multilingual installation interface.

Compiling and Building

Compiling and building refer to the process of converting human-readable source code to machine-readable binary code. The computer does not understand source code. Before a program can be run, that program must be built at least once. Once a program is built, there will be two kinds of files associated with that program: the source files (such as *.java) and the byte code class files (such as *.class). A program will have to be rebuilt whenever these two kinds of files get out of sync. This can happen for several reasons: edits, deletions, additions, etc.

BEC provides compiling and building in many computer languages, such as: Java, C/C++, VB, Delphi